Percy-Guardian of the Hunt
by Riptide358
Summary: the war against Gaia is over and Percy has lost Annabeth whose last wish is for him to move on but after months of despair and guilt he leaves camp only to re-emerge years later and brought in front of the Gods who offer him a new purpose…being the guardian of the hunt. Chaos-brief appearance. Possible Pertemis or Perzoe later. I suck at summaries please read it's worth it-I hope.
1. Chapter 1

Percy-Guardian of the Hunt

 **HEY! So i had an idea for a story and rough idea where i want it to go so without further ado here's the 1st chapter!**

 **I DON'T OWN PJO OR HOO SERIES IM NOT RICK RIORDAN- WHO OWNS THEM.**

 **ITS MY 1ST FANFIC I HOPE YOU ENJOY!**

 **Chapter 1: the war part 1**

 **Narrator POV: (A/N: Percy still has Curse of Achilles because I think I can use it nicely in this chapter. The story will be told mainly from the narrator-me, or Percy's POV but I may mix it up idk.)**

The war with Gaia was at its peak. This was the last stand. The Greek and Roman demigods had joined ranks in front of Camp Half-Blood. Most of the Giants had already perished. Enceladus had been defeated by Jason, Piper and Leo when they had gone to save Piper's father. Alcyoneus had been slain in Canada by Frank and Hazel. Polybotes was turned to dust by Percy and Terminus in New Rome. The twin Giants Ephialtes and Otis downed by Jason and Percy and the killed was Bacchus. Damasen was in Tartarus and was friendly anyway and so was not part of this war. Clytius was set alight by Hazel and Hecate. The only major threats were Gration-who was fighting Artemis and Thalia, Mimas who was fighting Leo, Frank and Hephaestus, Hippolytus who was currently occupied with Annabeth and Hermes, Periboia who was battling Piper, Hazel and Aphrodite, Porphyrion was in combat with Jason and Jupiter.

Then of course the main threat was Gaia. The remaining Gods were battling the Primordial deity and were barely holding their own. Nico and Will stood back to back as they took on a horde of hellhounds with Mrs O'Leary by their sides. Reyna stood in front of the Romans, rallying the cohorts to the eagle and they charged head on to a battalion consisting of Laistrygonians, Empousai, Dracaena and Drakons. Clarisse gathered and screamed "CHARGE!" as the Greeks met centaurs, Cyclopes, the Hydra and several karpoi on the battlefield. The hunters were perched on trees and picked off the monsters that posed threats that were unseen by the demigods engaged in battle. Those that were still fighting were fighting valiantly, some were injured and had been taken to safety by harpies and Argus where some of the Apollo cabin had set up a medical bay. Grover was leading the satyrs/fauns and nature spirits who were fighting with clubs or playing reed pipes that caused plants to wrap around enemy monsters and cause them to trip resulting in campers slaying them as they struggled to get back to their feet. However there were many casualties as bodies were fallen and littered around the ground waiting to be claimed by the harpies or Argus and then placed carefully with the other bodies respectfully on the side.

In the centre of the battle, a lone demigod in Greek armour and a leaf-shaped, glowing Celestial Bronze sword, sliced through an Empousai as if her armour was made of paper. As the monster turned to dust he stopped, wiped the sweat as it dripped down his forehead and swept back his messy, uncontrollable raven black hair to reveal his sea green eyes only for his hair to fall back to its original state. He scoured the battlefield looking to see where he would be needed the most. He had beaten Ares, retrieved Zeus's master bolt and the Golden Fleece, held the sky, bearer of the Curse of Achilles, he defeated Hyperion and Kronos and was the hero of Olympus… he was Percy Jackson, son of Poseidon.

 **Percy POV:**

I wiped the sweat off my forehead and ran my hand through my hair to sweep it out of my eyes but to no avail. I looked at my surroundings to see where I could help the most. I saw the Amazons and the Romans fighting side by side on my left and slowly deplete half of the monsters in Gaia's army. On my right the Greeks and the Cyclopes including Briares and Tyson (who had Ella flying in circles around him) slowly but surely turning the other half of Gaia's army into dust. In front of me I could see the rest of the seven and the Gods fighting the rest of the Giants and Gaia. I saw Gration fall as Thalia drew electricity from the sky and skewered the Giant as Artemis sent an arrow flying that lodged between his eyes turning him to dust. I saw Frank in eagle form scratch Mimas with his talons as Leo and Hephaestus sent beams of fire at the giant charring him into oblivion. I saw Hazel manipulate the mist as Piper advanced with her dagger drawn as she stabbed the giant before passing the dagger to her mother who finished the job.

I ran up to Thalia, Leo, Frank, Hazel and Piper just as Artemis, Hephaestus and Aphrodite flashed away to help in the fight against Gaia. "Thalia go and help the rest of the hunters." I looked at Piper and Leo as Thalia ran to join her sisters. "Piper, Leo go and reinforce the Greeks wherever they need help. Hazel, Frank go and help the Romans. It looks like the third cohort is about to be stretched too far for them to hold ranks. I'll help here with Jason and Annabeth." I could tell they were exhausted. It was etched on their faces and I knew they wouldn't be able to face another Giant. I wouldn't be able to take it if any of them died. We had all grown close in the last few days. I guess impending doom does that to people. Piper and Leo ran towards the Greeks whilst Frank turned into an eagle and grabbed Hazel and flew into the midst of the third cohort before turning into a tiger and pouncing into the enemy ranks. I looked at both giants to decide who I was going to help. My instinct was to go to Annabeth as I wouldn't be able to bare it if something happened to her. I was able to run towards her when I heard Jason cry out in pain.

I looked over just as the bane of Zeus caught him with the butt of the spear causing him to fall unconscious. I silently cursed as I sprinted at top speed and just about parried Porphyrion's spear as he went to deal the final blow to Jason. I summoned a wave that pushed the Giant back a few feet. I looked at Zeus and an understanding passed between us. I charged. The wind picked up as I was surrounded by my own personal hurricane. I knew Zeus was helping me as the lightning flashed around me as I pressed the Giant back. Whenever it looked like the Giant was gaining the advantage Zeus would strike causing the King of Giants to falter. Suddenly, there was a blood-curdling scream coming from my right that was so ear-bursting that it caused all the fighting to stop. Literally. Even the giants stopped fighting. I looked over at the sight that met my eyes caused my heart to sink…

 **WOW A CLIFF HANGER IN THE 1ST CHAPTER. SORRY...WHAT DID YOU GUYS THINK? COMMENT AND TELL ME WHAT YOU GUYS THINK! HOPEFULLY I CAN UPDATE FAST AND OFTEN. I HAVE A ROUGH IDEA ON WHERE I WANT THE STORY TO GO AND ALREADY HAVE THE NEXT CHAPTER STARTED! IF THE STORY GOES THE WAY I WANT IT TO IT SHOULD HAVE A SEQUEL TOO DUE TO ME WANTED TO END THIS STORY ON A CLIFF HANGER BUT THATS IN THE DISTANT FUTURE-IM GETTING AHEAD OF MYSELF! ANYWAY THANKS FOR READING**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: the war part 2**

 _Last time: Suddenly, there was a blood-curdling scream coming from my right that was so ear-bursting that it caused all the fighting to stop. Literally. Even the giants stopped fighting. I looked over at the sight that met my eyes caused my heart to sink…_

 **Percy POV:**

Grief. That was the only feeling I was experiencing at the moment. Hippolytus had struck a lucky blow and had stabbed Annabeth with his sword as it penetrated her armour and lodged in her stomach. Just by looking I knew it was a fatal blow. "Nico" I shouted. Nico appeared out of the shadows in front of me. "Help Zeus". I didn't wait for him to reply, I ran as fast as I could to Annabeth. I could feel the tears roll down my cheeks. I got to where Annabeth had fallen. Hermes was still fighting Hippolytus but I knew he wouldn't last forever but Annabeth was my top priority.

"Hey…" I croaked. She looked up at me, her grey eyes once stormy but now dull. She saw my tears and raised her hand and shakily wiped them away. I put her head on my lap. Green eyes met grey. "Annabeth i…" she cut me off my saying "Percy…listen to me. I-it's ok. I need you to…t-to do a few things for me. Pl-please?" she took sharp breaths throughout and I knew it was hurting her to talk. I nodded. "First…I need you to survive this…ok. And secondly, I want you to move on…we know I'm going to die but I don't want y-you to be depressed. Live for me. Promise me." I brought my head down and cried on her chest. The war had resumed all around us but all that mattered was me and her. I felt like my heart had stopped functioning due to it being ripped out of my chest. She put her hand under my chin and lifted my head up so that we were eye to eye. She said "I love you Percy…always and forever. My Seaweed Brain." She leant in and kissed me lightly. "Promise me…" I felt her body shiver and then go slack as she died in my arms. Tears streamed down my cheeks as I laid her gently on the side of the field. "I promise Annabeth. I promise."

Grief coursed through me and I let out a cry of anguish. It was quickly replaced by rage and a lust for revenge at the enemy that dared separate me from Annabeth…forever. I charged at Hippolytus as the tug in my gut increased. A tremor passed through the ground as I unleashed an earthquake causing the giant to stumble slightly. He tried to regain balance but I was too fast. I was upon him in a flash as I slashed and jabbed at the giant. I swiped my sword at his legs and swept his legs from underneath him and smashed his nose. I raised riptide and brought it down severing the arm that held the sword that caused Annabeth's death. Hermes came up next to me and slammed his caduceus into the giants face causing him to turn to dust. Hermes was turning towards me but I wasn't waiting around. I wasn't satisfied. I was still angry. I turned around and headed towards Porphyrion.

I summoned the hurricane and I immediately felt the winds pick up. I wasn't feeling very forgiving and the wind and water were merging together into the mightiest storm I had ever conjured. I had almost no control over it but at this time I didn't care. I only cared about revenge. I leapt at the King of Giants and slammed into him. The storm had grown and was so large that the height was over that of the Giants. "Bah…stop that wind. I can't see." Good, I thought. He slashed with his spear and managed to cut my shoulder slightly causing a line of blood to ooze out. I was confused. Didn't I have the curse of Achilles? Then I realised that I had lost my mortal anchor. She didn't exist anymore ( **A/N don't know if this can happen but hey fanfic...so)** and therefore I had lost the curse. I got angrier-if that was possible. I literally became a whirlwind of destruction. Monsters tried to help their king but they never got close. The storm was too powerful for them and blew them away. Porphyrion didn't stand a chance as I stabbed him in the gut as Zeus sent his master bolt crashing into the giant's chest causing him to crumble. The giants were defeated. Finally. My storm stopped abruptly.

I looked around. All the gods were now fighting Gaia. Most the monsters were dead or fleeing. The rest of the seven apart from Annabeth were behind me. Jason was up again. They all looked tired and upset-they must have seen what happened to Annabeth. "C'mon lets go finish this." We ran towards the Gods who were struggling against Gaia-who at that point realised that the giants were dead. She let out a cry of rage and blasted out beams of power causing the gods to fly backwards. We reached the battleground and stood face to face with Gaia. We all looked at each other, then Gaia then back at each other. We knew what we had to do. Gaia laughed. "Foolish demigods. I defeated all the Olympians and Hades what chance do you weaklings have? I am the Earth!" The Gods were slowly getting to their feet. "You may be the Earth, Dirt Face but I'm the son of the Earthshaker. Know what that means? NOW GUYS" We all attacked at once. Frank shot arrow after arrow. Piper charm speaking Gaia to get her to go back to sleep. Leo sending fireballs left, right and centre. Hazel was using her power to lift up dead warriors weapons and send them flying at Gaia. Jason was sending lightning strikes repeatedly. And me? I summoned the biggest earthquake I had ever produced out of sheer rage and grief. I followed it up with a hurricane and sent it flying towards Gaia. It was increasing in size as it travelled forward. The pain in my gut was almost unbearable and my muscles were sore but I pushed on. The Gods were back and sent beams of power except Aphrodite who copied Piper and tried to charm speak Gaia into hibernation. BOOM! A massive explosion erupted from where Gaia stood as she was overwhelmed. As the dust settled Gaia was nowhere in sight. Cheers echoed from our side but I didn't last long enough to let one out myself as I succumbed to the darkness willingly.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: after the war**

 _Last time: As the dust settled Gaia was nowhere in sight. Cheers echoed from our side but I didn't last long enough to let one out myself as I succumbed to the darkness willingly._

 **Narrator POV:**

The battle was over and relief was spreading through the survivors of the war. The monsters were either dead or had run away. Most people were now relaxing, celebrating or receiving treatment for their wounds. The Gods however along with Thalia, Nico and the remaining members of the seven were standing around the unconscious hero of Olympus-Percy. Apollo crouched down to check on Percy's condition. He put his hand on Percy's neck to feel him pulse. He relaxed. It was still there beating normally. Percy was alive. He looked up to see all the faces looking at him with worry. Apollo took a flask of nectar from his waist and slowly poured a small amount down Percy's throat causing his wounds to heal. Apollo said "he's fine. He's just exhausted. I doubt he's ever used that much energy before. Heck I'm surprised he didn't faint sooner. He will wake up soon can't do much else now."

The next few minutes composed of the Gods checking on their remaining children, Artemis checking on her hunters and everyone getting treated by either Apollo or his kids. The deceased heroes' shrouds were burnt after they were given their final rites. There were many casualties-3 hunters, 35 nature spirits, 10 Romans, 8 Greeks and 6 Amazons. Most that had perished had been the young and inexperienced members of the battle who had not had enough time to be adequately trained and therefore unable to handle the strength of the opposing army.

On one of the beds in the medical bay a demigod with sea green eyes and messy raven black hair stirred.

 **Percy POV:**

I groaned. I sat up and looked around. The last thing I remembered was cheering before I blacked out. Heroic I know but I couldn't help it. I was exhausted using my powers to that extent. I had never pushed myself that far. I took in my surroundings. I was in a room…no a tent that was filled with beds-but only a few were occupied. A few people with broken arms or legs that took a while to fully heal after ambrosia and nectar.

Then I remembered Annabeth and sadness immediately filled my body. Fresh tears flowed down my face. She was really gone. My Wise Girl had been unfairly taken from me. The last thing she said to me was to move on and live for her and not be depressed. I had promised her and I don't make promises that I don't intend to keep-but I knew it would be difficult. I swung my legs off the bed and make my way slowly towards the mass gathering around the campfire. "…and so I congratulate the Gods and their infinite bravery in their resounding efforts in defeating the Giants and Gaia." I snorted. Of course Zeus was giving a speech on the bravery of the Gods. "Now onto you. The brave soldiers who valiantly defended Olympus with pride. I am to bestow upon you fitting rewards. Firstly to the Cyclopes. Err…What would you like?" The entire battalion of Cyclopes raised their broken weapons and said as one "Sticks." There was laughter scattered around the crowd. "Very well," said Zeus. "You should have the finest sticks in the land. To the amazons we shall lend you the Cyclopes to forge you weapons for your…website range whatever that is as well as give you funding for your endeavours. To the Romans and Greeks I decree a joint camp so that you are all safe and united as well as letting you spend the next hour or so with your parents. Anyone disagree?" the rest of the Gods shook their heads. I was shocked. Zeus had given everyone a gift that they truly wanted. For the demigods who hadn't seen their parents let alone spoken to them, this meant a lot as I could clearly see from their faces. "And of course the fallen heroes shall reach Elysium I'm sure." Hades nodded to confirm Zeus's statement.

I sighed. It was a perfect evening. It was warm with a slight breeze. The sun was setting on Camp Half-blood and there was a smell of strawberries in the air. But I couldn't enjoy it. Not without Annabeth. I walked over to the beach and sat down and looked out to the sea. I glanced back and saw the Gods sitting down with their kids-whose faces were lit up with joy as if the entire war and all the casualties that had come with had been worth it just to sit down with their parents for an hour or so. Even the hunters had been allowed to break ranks to go and visit their parents and half-siblings. Both Greek and Roman campers had gathered and it must have been weird for the Romans as the Gods were in their Greek form. I saw Poseidon walk over to me and sit down. He looked tired; hell he probably had to do the most out of the Gods during the battle against Gaia with him being the Earthshaker and all. "Percy ma boy how are you feeling?" he asked. I held back a sarcastic comment. I looked into his eyes and saw concern. "Dad…I don't know. I want to cry, I want to scream and shout, I want to sleep but most of all I just want Annabeth." I broke down. He put his hand on my shoulder and pulled me in for an embrace. I let it all out. "Percy it will only get better and know I am there for you, and proud of you." He pulled away and dissolved into a sea breeze.

I walked back to the campfire as the Gods were saying goodbye to their kids, embracing them one by one. I saw Hestia in the flame tending the hearth. She looked up and gave me a bright smile that filled me with warmth and hope. I returned the smile. Suddenly I felt a weird sensation course through my body as I fought the urge to throw up. I looked up and recognized that I had been flashed onto Olympus. The rest of the seven were beside me along with Nico and Reyna. "Demigods we have summoned you here as we have all agreed to grant you gifts individually due to your crucial part in this war. Now we have decided as a council that we can give you a little while to think about what you want but it has to be reasonable because it will be your back up wish as we will obviously be giving you what you deserve. Go on then off you go." We were all brought back to reality after being shocked that the Gods and especially Zeus had allowed to choose our reward…kind of. I knew what Hazel and Frank were going to ask for-removing the others curse so that they could live in peace. Leo was probably going to sacrifice his wish to free Calypso and I had no idea what the others would wish for. I took a deep breath and beckoned Leo, Frank and Hazel over to me.

 **A/N: Hey guys thanks to those who have followed and favorited already. I didn't expect that less than 24 hours after I posted to already get such a positive response-so thank you it means a lot. I need some help from you guys though-what should the remaining 6 and Nico and Reyna get as rewards. Immortality? Godhood-though if you guys prefer this then I'm not sure I can offer it to all of them as I doubt Zeus would allow that. I want to keep it so that it is fair to them all-except Percy obviously. Any and all comments are appreciated. I will take them all on board.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: Prize Giving**

 **A/N: hey guys this is the next chapter. I don't own Percy Jackson, PJO or HOO, Rick Riordan does but I do own this story. Anyways enjoy!**

 **Percy POV:**

They walked over to me. I could tell they were curious as to why they had been called. "Listen guys. I know what you guys are going to wish for. You're going to decline the reward in exchange for removing your curses," I looked at Frank and Hazel, then at Leo "and you are going to ask for Calypso to be freed. Now before you start arguing with me listen carefully. I know what they're going to offer and frankly I don't want it so I will use my wish for you guys. You're my friends and so I can't lose you like I lost Annabeth. Please let me do this. For me." To say they all looked dumbstruck was an understatement. They tried to talk me out of it but I wasn't having any of it and I got them to surrender. We took our place in front of the Gods. Zeus looked at us and then beckoned Jason forward first with him being his son and all. "Jason, the Gods have chosen to grant youimmortality with exemption from the ancient law so that you may once again fight for Olympus should the need arise-which knowing our luck it probably will. You shall also be a trainer for the demigods in the new camp. What shall we call the new camp anyway?" Zeus questioned. "Camp super awesome!" stated Apollo. As soon as he uttered those words, Artemis shot an arrow that landed just to the side of his head along with a glare telling him to shut up, causing Apollo to pale slightly. "How about Camp Heroes?" offered Athena. The Gods seemed to ponder this before all of them slowly nodded in agreement.

"Anyway, back to the point. Jason my boy do you accept?" Jason seemed to consider the offer he had just received, probably thinking about the offer in comparison to the one he thought about before. He finally replied "I accept dad," before bowing. The Gods raised their weapons of power and started chanting but with my ADHD I wasn't listening to what was happening. I turned to look at Jason. His injuries had healed, he looked stronger and even had a faint glow to him. Piper was called up next and offered the same as Jason which she accepted in a flash. Reyna was also offered the same and accepted. Nico was called forward by his dad. "Nico, I am very proud of you." You could tell the Lord of the Dead was finding it difficult to praise his son as well as shocking to the council to hear praise coming from him. "You shall also be offered the same as the others but you will also be my Lieutenant just like Thalia is Artemis' and so you will split your time between camp and the underworld. Do you accept?" Nico looked stunned and could only nod as he was covered with an aura of light, the same way Jason and the others had done.

Then something occurred that I don't think has happened before in the throne room. Zeus called for Frank, Hazel and Leo to come forward. They inched forward and knelt before Zeus. "You three are also offered the same as your friends before. Do you accept?" Zeus looked like he knew they were going to decline. All three of them looked at me nervously and I gave a small smile and a nod telling them to accept. They all sighed and nodded at Zeus and thanking him for his offer. Zeus had a momentary look of shock on his face but it disappeared just as fast. My friends walked back to their spots as my dad called out my name causing it to echo around the room. "PERCY JACKSON!" I was getting a serious case of de ja vu. I knelt in the middle of the throne room. I heard Zeus say "rise" as I awkwardly rose from my kneeling position a little too quickly causing me to stumble resulting in a few chuckles and Zeus rolling his eyes as if saying in his head _seriously? This is the hero of Olympus?_ Zeus cleared his throat as the room once again became silent. "Yes, now thank you for your…uh…aid in the battle blah blah blah we once again offer you Godhood." I knew this was coming but I also knew that this was not what I wanted.

I started speaking. "I'm flattered once again Lord Zeus but I think you know my answer." Zeus nodded. He wasn't shocked but that didn't mean that he wasn't a little angry that I rejected his offer again. In fact none of the council looked shocked. I continued. "So, same deal as last time? I ask for any wish after you swear on the Styx to grant it?" Zeus nodded slowly but I could tell he didn't like it. He swore on the Styx and I proceeded to tell him my wish. "I would like the curses on Frank and Hazel to be lifted as well as Calypso to be freed because that didn't happen last time and because it didn't I think she should keep her immortality. Also what you guys did today-sitting with your kids and talking to them-made me realise you guys really have changed for the better. But part of my wish is that you visit your kids often. Even if it's just on the weekends or just once a month but they shouldn't have to wait for another war just to see you again. Forget the Ancient Laws crap, you guys have broken them too many times anyway. If you just visit your kids every once in a while they won't feel resentful and try and join the dark side. Also please try and get along with all the minor gods and peaceful titans. We don't need another war anytime soon but if we are destined to have one we need all the allies we can get. Finally, I want the remodelled Olympus to be put in memory of Annabeth so everyone knows she designed it. That is my wish." I ended with a bow to Zeus because I could tell his ego had been bruised when I refused godhood…again. There was a nervy silence and I knew why. My friends were stunned that I declined godhood and instead used my wish for others and the Gods were thinking about my list of demands. Finally there was a sigh and I realised the Gods had communicated telepathically. "Very well, we shall grant your wish." Frank and Hazel glowed for a second, then the glow vanished. I thanked Zeus and turned, passing a statue of the King of Gods and the plaque caught my eye. It read…

 _Lord Zeus, King of the Gods, Lord of the Skies_

 _Designed by the late Annabeth Chase_

 _Heroine of Olympus_

I stopped and smiled sadly. Before I could continue towards my friends I heard someone yell "Wait!"

 **A/N: end of chapter and another cliff hanger. I love using them so there probably will be quite a few in the future. I'm sorry for a lack of action chapter but there need to be these filler chapters to help the story flow. Comment what you guys think. All comments accepted. Thanks for reading!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: Coping**

 **A/N: hey guys sorry for the late update. I have exams coming up like in a week but I took some time off revision to update this as kind of a stress relief** **. And also I lost a bet with my friend who said I needed some humour in the story and by losing I had to have the majority of this chapter funny so…On with the story. I don't own PJO or HoO.**

 _Last time: I stopped and smiled sadly. Before I could continue towards my friends I heard someone yell "Wait!"_

 **Percy POV:**

I turned around towards the source of the noise and saw one of the Goddesses I thought was least likely to talk, let alone tell me to stop leaving. Artemis. I could sense everybody was looking at her curiously, wondering why she had spoken. Artemis's face was expressionless. She looked at Zeus as she addressed him. "Father, I believe that what Perseus is doing is admirable. Sacrificing power and position for the sake of others. I think it is only fair to reward such loyalty and humbleness with a just reward that benefits him. I therefore propose that Perseus should be bestowed partial immortality like my hunters."

There was a stunned silence. I was shocked and I could tell everyone else was too. I knew she didn't hate me like other men but it wasn't like we were friends or anything. Artemis, the world's biggest man-hater had just complimented, praised and said I should be rewarded. Zeus was the first one to recover from the shock as he pondered about Artemis's proposal.

"Very well. Perseus we shall grant you partial immortality." A faint glow surrounded me and then promptly vanished. "If that is all, council dismissed." I turned around once again before a thought crossed my mind. I gestured for my friends to continue on their way and that I would catch up with them. I then made my way over to the god of the forges.

"Lord Hephaestus." I gave a short bow as he looked towards me. He nodded to tell me he was listening. "I know you are going to get Calypso lord Hephaestus, but I have one last favour to ask that I think would make your son very happy. Is it possible to allow Leo to go collect her?" I looked at Hephaestus with a hopeful expression. He smiled and nodded before saying "very well Perseus, call him and I shall keep Festus ready with a tracking device and supplies for his journey. And…thank you for considering Leo your friend, my children often have trouble making friends due to my characteristics, but you make friendship look easy. Thank you." I smiled before bowing and running off to find Leo and the rest of my friends.

I found them by the elevator waiting for me. I smiled in greeting. I was met with a hug by Hazel and man hugs from Frank and Leo. "Thank you Percy, I don't think we can ever thank you enough or ever repay you," said Hazel. I smiled at her sadly. "You don't need to thank me or repay me Hazel, your friendship is enough." She smiled radiantly. "Now," I said, "I have one more thing to do before we leave. Leo, come with me." He looked confused but followed anyway.

"I talked to your dad and I got him to allow you to be the one to go get Calypso off the island. I know you promised her you would get her off the island and I believe you should always keep your promises. So…go get her Leo." Leo looked dumbfounded. I knew he was struggling to find words to express himself. "Leo, no need to thank me; Festus is outside waiting for you, equipped with a tracking device and supplies." Leo leapt forward and engulfed me in a hug. "Thanks Percy." He ran off, leaving me to stand alone in the throne room to stare longingly at the plaque containing Annabeth's name.

 _Time skip-5 months_

 **Narrators POV:**

Camp Heroes had been fully built 2 weeks after Annabeth's death. It had taken the leadership of the Athena cabin, the skill of the Hephaestus cabin and the help of the campers and the legion. The romans had been given the option to have separate accommodation for the different cohorts or stay in the improved and larger camp cabins; they had chosen to integrate themselves with their new brothers and sisters in the cabins, but they would still train as cohorts. Capture the flag and war games had different teams: sometimes Greeks versus Romans, sometimes half the campers would team up with half of the cohorts against their other halves. Camp started to go back to normal and morale was slowly starting to reach back to normal. New friendships were forming daily and couples could be seen getting together. Leo had returned with Calypso, who was welcomed with open arms and granted a room in the Big House.

However, one person was miserable. He would walk around trying his hardest to curb his growing depression, smiling a fake smile to everyone he passed so that they would not see the hopeless situation he was in. It was 4 months since the son of Poseidon had felt that he would never feel the same as he once felt. The first month after Annabeth had died he had tried to keep his promise to her and move on but he couldn't do it. He would throw himself into his training most of the day, slashing and hacking at the dummies and automatons in the training arena as he blamed himself over her death. No one would come near Percy during this time as they knew that this was his way of coping. He barely ate and would rarely talk to anyone.

Over by the Hermes cabin, 3 campers were talking to a Hundred Handed Cyclops.

 **Percy POV:**

I was staring at the ceiling when I heard a knock on the cabin door. I sighed as I got up to open it. Leo and the Stolls were standing in the doorway with mischievous grins stretched across their faces. "Come on Percy, you been in here sulking and shutting everybody out. So I want to offer you a challenge. Rock, paper and scissors. If you win we'll leave, but if I win, then you have to do what we say. Do you accept?" Travis looked confident but I was pretty good at that game and it was the only way to get them to leave. "Fine," I said, "but I rule at this game." Leo and Conner smiled evilly at me and I instantly thought I had to look out for their cheating. "Ready?" asked Leo and Conner together. "Rock. Paper. Scissors." I smiled triumphantly at the rock in my hands as I saw Travis hold out 2 fingers. Then, my smile faltered and my eyes widened as I realised what had just occurred.

Travis had opted for a hand gun. It was the same trick I had used on Briares in the Labyrinth. "You talked to Briares," I said annoyed. "Fine what do I have to do?" Leo snickered as Conner said "well…there's a camp fire tonight and we may have told Chiron that you were going to be doing stand-up comedy instead of the usual sing song." I glared at them as they ran out of the cabin laughing. Great, I thought, now I have to think of a comedy routine.

The time for the camp fire came quicker than I had expected. I had tried to come up with a comedy routine for about half an hour before giving up and deciding to wing it. How hard could it be? I watched as Travis waltzed onstage with a mischievous grin. He looked at the demigods assembled in front of him before speaking. "Welcome fellow demigods. I know you were expecting the regular sing-a-long but tonight we have a special treat for you. Now please give a warm welcome the comical stylings of Percy-and please hold the tomatoes if he is bad." I couldn't tell if he was joking. I walked onto the stage and cleared my throat.

"Hi," I muttered nervously. "I'm Percy-most of you know me. I'm a son of Poseidon, god of the seas. I'd like to start by telling you that I'm not a comedian and even if I do tell jokes, they're more like one-liners rather than story jokes so…" I was interrupted by Conner who shouted "Stop stalling and start telling jokes Jackson." I sighed. _Here goes_ I thought. "Anyways, let's tell you guys about me, my life and some of the people in it. Let's start with me. Um, I'm the only child in my family and I like parks. I was standing in the park earlier today wondering why a Frisbee gets larger the closer it gets. And then it hit me." A lot of groans met that joke. _Shaky start,_ I thought. "My stepmom Amphitrite- we've recently started to get along but it's difficult to say what she does-she sells sea shells by the seashore." A couple of giggles-not bad. "Most of you guys know my mum-Sally. She's amazing. She worked on her own to provide for us so you know I tried to help out by getting a part time job-but it wasn't easy. I got fired from my job at for being persistently late." That got a couple of snickers, and a couple of groans as I felt my confidence increase a bit. "I quit my job at the helium gas factory. I refused to be spoken to in that tone." The number of laughs were increasing, which was good. "I used to be a mime, but it's only now that I can talk about it. I used to make clown shoes-which was no small feat." The Stolls and Leo were laughing now as well. "My mum's boyfriend Paul-nice guy-has hay fever and then found out he had diabetes; so I tried to cheer him up you know, flowers, and chocolates." Leo was on the floor holding his stomach. I grinned, this was fun.

"Paul's parents-Nancy and Eric, they don't like me. Whenever they come around they always complain about how much things cost. $2 for a cup of coffee, $1.25 for 3 custard creams and I'm like guys, you just popped around, I didn't invite you." Almost everyone was laughing, but there were still people groaning. "I don't really do that by the way-just in case you thought I did. My dad's other son Triton bought the complete box set of doctor who and we watched it back to back. Unfortunately, I wasn't the one facing the TV. When I was at school I spent half my time scared of things like fractions. Well I say _half_ my time. My ex stepfather Gabe-the one that my mum turned to stone-was a lollypop man at one point. At first I refused to believe he stole from his job as a lollypop man, but all the signs were there. My mum has some distant cousins-about 4 of them, they're all police marksmen, but their dad was a bank robber. He died recently…surrounded by his family." There were constant laughs at the moment as I stated joke after joke. I was running out of jokes though. I was outside the empire state building and this girl needed some help so I helped her and then I asked her name and she said Chantelle and so I said well if you're not going to tell me. Then I walked away. I went back to a school reunion a while back and everyone was talking about what they're doing now so I said I worked for the united nations because I have been UN-employed for a while now ( **Percy said this as U, N, employed-as in the UN united nations-also signifying unemployed.** After the war, we had to go to Olympus and Conner farted in the lift-it was wrong on so many levels." Everyone was laughing but at Conner, who was fake glaring at Percy whilst trying not to die of embarrassment.

"Have you guys ever wondered why Medusa never got the snakes on her head removed via a haircut? And if she did cut the off, does this mean she won't be able to turn people into stone anymore? And if that's so, does that mean that she would have _ereptile dysfunction?_ " Everyone was in stitches, crying their eyes out. "Thanks for listening I guess." I walked off to a round of applause. I thought about what Annabeth would say and my mind immediately came up with a response- _really seaweed brain? Ereptile Dysfunction was the best you could come up with?_

I smiled sadly. This whole camp reminded me of Annabeth, and I wouldn't be able to move on here and fulfil my promise to her. I had to leave and find my way again, no matter how tough or painful it was to leave behind the place I called home, and my friends. I slowly made my way to my cabin to pack my essentials-clothes, my sword, ambrosia and nectar, drachma and mortal money and my water bottle. I wrote a quick note to Chiron and placed it on my desk in the cabin. They would find it there. I had to sneak out before they noticed. I put my stuff in my bag and slung it on my back. I carefully tiptoed to the hill, ready to race away when a voice said…

"Where are you going Percy?" I stopped walking and turned around. Hestia stood in front of me with an eyebrow raised I bowed. "Lady Hestia, I'm leaving to fulfil my promise. I have to move on." She studied me for a while before saying "very well, I have a proposition for you. Would you be my champion?" I was shocked. "Why me?" She laughed. "You are a brave hero Percy. Kind and noble and willing to do whatever is right. You are the perfect champion for me. The hearth has the power to heal and harm. You can heal with fire and use fire in battle. You would also be able to instil hope in any living creature as well as summon cooked food. " I blushed. "I would be honoured Lady Hestia." She raised her hand as a warm, orangey glow emitted from her palm. I felt stronger, filled with more hope. She thought for a minute before saying "I think I know what you could do. You can go around helping demigods who are still yet to make it to camp. I can tell you where and when you are needed." I thought for a moment before carefully saying "that sounds like a good idea, however I will need some time to train my powers and fighting styles. For that I will need a few years so that I can protect these demigods to the best of my abilities. And I also need to see my mum and tell her where I am and what I am going to be doing."

She smiled and nodded. "Very well Percy, I will change your appearance slightly and mask your demigod smell so that you will have less troubles on your journey." She muttered something in Greek that I didn't quite catch. My eyes suddenly watered and my head started throbbing as well as my muscles. Then suddenly the pain vanished. I opened my eyes and Hestia gasped as she summoned a mirror. I was taller, around 6'3 with my hair darker than usual. My eyes had gone from sea green to red with sea green irises so that no one would recognise me if they saw my eyes. My muscles were bigger so that I looked less scrawny but not overly muscular. I smiled at my new appearance. I thanked Hestia before I raced down the hill towards my mother's house.

 **A/N: well that's the chapter. My longest one yet. I try to get at least 1000 words per chapter but I will try make them as long as I can. Hope you liked it. Please review if you have any questions or just to say what you thought. If you didn't understand any of the jokes then review or dm me and I will reply as soon as possible. As I said I have exams next week so the next update may be sometime in late May. But hopefully not too late.**

 **PS: I need an OC demigod less than 10 years old for Percy to rescue when he gets back. Dm me your character with their name, age, description of appearance and their godly parent. If you want you can send a back story that I can use-though it's not necessary. I will select one to use but I may use the others too. This was kinda another filler chapter.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6: New beginnings**

 **A/N: hey guys. Been a while huh? Sorry for the long interval. Been a rough couple of months. I apologise and can only try not to let it happen again. So on we go.**

Disclaimer: the usual characters are Rick Riordan's plot mine. I don't own PJO or HoO

 **Percy POV:**

I stopped outside my mum's apartment and composed myself. I wondered what I was going to say. I hesitated, then knocked on the door. I heard the sound of rustling papers on the other side before they were replaced by the sound of footsteps getting closer. The door swung open to reveal my mum gazing upon me looking confused. "Um…hello. Percy's not here at the moment and I don't know when he's coming back…" I stopped her by giving her a hug. "Hi mum." Her eyes widened as she returned my embrace. "Percy, what happened to you? You look different." She ushered me inside and we sat down on the couch. I began to recap the war and everything since I had been kidnapped. My mum was a great listener. She had the right reaction to the right parts of the story. She cried when she heard about Annabeth. Once I told her about my newly adopted appearance I had to tell her I was going away to keep my promise.

"Hey mum I have to leave soon. I promised Annabeth I would move on. I'm going to go round the world to train and then I will be back to help any demigod that needs help. But I need to train first. I will keep in contact with you every 2 weeks to let you know how I am. But it won't be by iris message because I don't want anyone to find me. I have an idea actually. Lady Hestia…" I called into the sky to no one in particular. There was a flash and Lady Hestia was in front of me. We bowed but Hestia waved it off. "My lady I was wondering if I could deliver letters to my mum every 2 weeks by giving them to you through the fire." Hestia smiled warmly. "Of course you can Percy. I will make sure she gets them." We talked for around another hour before I had to leave. My mum gave a tight hug before I left the house.

 _ **5 Years Later:**_

 **Narrator's POV:**

It had been 5 years since anybody on Olympus had had any contact with Percy. The first couple of years there had been many search parties sent out to find the lost hero of Olympus, Hermes would check wherever he had deliveries and found nothing. Nico had said that Percy wasn't dead and Hades was quick to confirm that he wasn't. In the 3rd year of Percy's disappearance, the hunters were dispatched to track him down but after a year of trying to track him down, Zeus told them to stop the mission. Artemis was furious for having failed a mission; something that had never happened…ever. Zeus had told the council that if Perseus wanted to be found then he would've come back himself.

However, Zeus had overturned his decision to stop searching for Percy after monsters had banded together, attacking in small and large groups. Organised attacks on the camps and the hunters that had to date, only ended in minor injuries for the demigods and hunters. But Artemis and Chiron had noticed that the attacks weren't full-on attacks. The monsters seemed to be holding back as if testing the skills of the demigods, analysing the campers and hunters before retreating. And then there was the issue of the number of demigods that had turned up at the hunter's camp ad Camp Heroes unnoticed by anybody. The only clue they had was from the demigods who described their rescuer as a muscularly lean male with dark black hair and orange-y eyes that radiated warmth when talking to them but flashed like roaring flames when confronting enemies.

The Gods were conversing in the throne room about the threats Olympus faced right now. It was clear by the look on Zeus's face that he didn't like the idea that was being proposed to him by Athena currently. He sighed and eventually nodded his head and gestured to Hermes who flashed out, only to return with Hades a second later. "Hades, as much as I don't like to admit it, we need your help. The armies of the underworld will play a key part in this upcoming war and so I offer you your throne on the council as well as Hestia so that together we may vanquish this threat." Hades had a look of shock on his face but managed a small nod as an obsidian black throne appeared covered in skulls next to Poseidon's throne whilst a regal orange throne that seemed to have flames surrounding it appeared by Hera's throne as Hades and Hestia took their place on their thrones.

Zeus cleared his throat and silenced descended on the throne room. He gestured at Athena who went about updating Hades on what the Gods had been debating over the last few hours. Hades nodded to indicate he understood the current situation. "Yes, Nico had informed me of these demigods showing up out of the blue, but…" The Lord of the Underworld didn't get to finish as he was interrupted by Artemis suddenly tensing, then flashing out. The throne room was silent and looks of shock and curiosity filled the room. The silence was broken by Hades who said "Did I say something wrong…?"

 _ **Meanwhile:**_

The sun was at its peak. The heat was bordering unbearable and the air was humid. Deep inside a forest, a bunch of immortal preteens were feeling the sweltering conditions. They were laying around fanning themselves with long branches covered in leaves under the shade. Their sweat-covered faces showed tiredness as they slumped against the trees. 13 bows were laying on the ground next to a bunch of quivers. Despite the weather, the girls were laid back comfortably, conversing with each other and joking over past stories. The area was secluded and the hunters of Artemis were hidden in a thick part of the forest, with bushes and plants surrounding them. To the untrained eye, if anyone had seen them they would think the hunters were randomly spread out, but the hunters were sat strategically. The purpose of sitting was that they were staying low, staying out of the heat was just an added bonus. The 13 huntresses were sitting in a square formation, each side of the square was keeping an eye on each of the 4 points of entry to their campsite.

There was a sudden _crunch!_ The hunters were up in an instant with their bows drawn. The girl at the front raised her voice. She had black, spiky hair. "Reveal yourself!" There was silence and then a _ROAR_ was heard as an army emerged from behind the shrubbery. At least 100 monsters appeared ranging from empousai to Cyclopes to the manticore. The hunters tensed, Artemis wasn't here and they were hopelessly outnumbered. The manticore grinned. "I guess it's time for my revenge! No petty Goddess to save you now." The hunters replied by sending wave after wave of arrows into the army of monsters. The raining arrows caused some of the monsters to turn into dust. The monsters started advancing towards the hunters, who kept firing arrows picking off monsters left, right and centre. Half of the army had been killed without a single casualty for the hunters. But now the monsters had gotten too close for the hunters to use their bows. The hunters drew their hunting knives as a unit, while Thalia drew her spear and Aegis. The oncoming army slowed and recoiled at the sight of the lieutenant's shield.

"Do not fear! Today we shall spill blood and kill these huntresses before we leave!" The army cheered and forged on. The battle was just getting started. The monsters may have outnumbered the hunters, but they were outclassed by the skill instilled in them by Artemis. There was only one major problem for the hunters-and that was the manticore. Standing near the back of the army, Dr Thorn fired spikes to make it difficult to fully concentrate on the monsters.

Thalia stabbed an empousai in the gut with her spear and then set her sights on Thorn. She raced nimbly towards her target as Thorn kept firing poisonous darts at the hunters. The fight was slowly turning in favour of the monsters. Thalia called down a bolt of lightning and watched as it slammed into the spiky beast. The manticore turned his attention to the daughter of Zeus and snarled. He started rapidly firing darts that were quickly blocked by Aegis. They battled for a couple of minutes, Thorn firing darts whenever Thalia got too close. She cursed as she tried to gain the upper hand. All of a sudden, a dart whizzed through Thalia's defence and grazed her arm. The stinging sensation she felt was sharp and instant and her vision blurred. She was already fatigued and the heat did her no favours.

Thorn's eyes gleamed as the huntress in front of him swayed dizzily. He swiped his tail and caused Thalia to lose her footing. She landed hard and smacked her head on the ground causing black spots to fill her sight. When she regained her sight, she saw the manticore standing over her, ready to fire a poison dart right into her heart. She closed her eyes and internally prayed. _I'm sorry Lady Artemis, I failed the Hunt. Please come and save the rest of them._

A silver flash caught her attention. The manticore laughed and taunted the Goddess. "Come Artemis, watch as I kill your Lieutenant right in front of your eyes. Watch the light leave her eyes. I believe last time we met you lost your first Lieutenant now you will lose another."

The manticore pulled his tail back, ready to fire. Artemis couldn't do anything; she was too far away. She could only desperately shout "Nooooo…"

 **A/N: well it feels good to be back! What did you think? Sorry about the cliff hanger and the terrible battle scene-that was a little rushed I admit-will be better in the future. Hope you enjoyed! Please review and tell me what you thought.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7: Reappearance:**

Disclaimer: the usual characters are Rick Riordan's plot mine. I don't own PJO or HoO

 _ **Last time:**_ _She closed her eyes and internally prayed. I'm sorry Lady Artemis, I failed the Hunt. Please come and save the rest of them._

 _A silver flash caught her attention. The manticore laughed and taunted the Goddess. "Come Artemis, watch as I kill your Lieutenant right in front of your eyes. Watch the light leave her eyes. I believe last time we met you lost your first Lieutenant now you will lose another."_

 **Artemis' POV:** **(A/N: my first change of POV other than Percy and Narrator. Also I might change pairing-if there is one- to perzoe rather than pertemis. I'm still not sure-what do you guys think?)**

The council meeting was dragging on. It had been the same thing repeated over and over again. Demigods turning up unnoticed, the strange man who was helping them, the monsters acting strangely and then finally Perseus Jackson and his disappearance. The demigod infuriated me. He had managed to go and stay away from everybody ad remain undetected-even from the hunt. And nothing escapes the hunt. ( **A/N: I've read a number of fanfics that have Artemis saying "that boy-no Man…" in the throne room etc. and then having like this massive internal struggle before reluctantly admitting she likes him. I just find it overdone and I feel like rolling my eyes at it and being like jheeez another one!?-no offence to anyone who uses this method but it's just my opinion. If it is gonna be pertemis, I'm gonna take my time with it but it's just gonna start as respect between friends-dunno if it's gonna be pertemis anyway enough with the rant-on with the story)**

Hades had assured us that Perseus was still alive as his soul was yet uncollected by Thanatos. But I definitely had grudging respect for the son of Poseidon-to remain hidden for this amount of time without death was rare. But then again, he had this uncanny ability to do things no one else had the audacity to do. I looked up to find Athena talking to father about something he clearly didn't like if his facial expressions were anything to go by. Suddenly, Hades appeared in the throne room led by Hermes. I was surprised when Hades and Hestia received their thrones back-that must have been Athena's idea that father didn't like.

I suddenly felt a tingly feeling in the back of my head as I heard Thalia's voice. _I'm sorry Lady Artemis, I failed the Hunt. Please come and save the rest of them._ I tensed and I felt my eyes widen. I flashed out at once, barely acknowledging what Hades was saying.

I flashed into the clearing where I had left the girls to go to Olympus. I saw monster dust scattered on the floor as a battle raged. I scanned the field and saw a couple hunters passed out, but none dead. Then, my heart stopped as I saw Thalia spread eagle on the floor looking at the manticore about to shove a poison dart into her heart. I was too far to do anything. Thalia and Thorn noticed me. The beast laughed maniacally as he saw me. "Come Artemis, watch as I kill your Lieutenant right in front of your eyes. Watch the light leave her eyes. I believe last time we met you lost your first Lieutenant now you will lose another." I felt a pain in my heart as he brought up Zoe. I watched as he whipped his tail back to deliver the fatal blow and my heart clenched. I desperately cried out "Nooooo…"

 **Line Break-(god you must hate me-that's twice I cut it off at the same point. But I'm enjoying being a little evil.)**

 **Narrator POV:**

An 18 year old boy with dark black hair and pulsing red and green eyes sat cross-legged against a tree, pen in hand as he seemed to be scribbling something down on a piece of paper. A smile was present on his face as he wrote. As the finished writing, a flash of flames erupted a few feet beside him causing him to jump to his feet, the pen elongating into a gleaming bronze sword. The boy relaxed as he noticed the figure in front of him; an 8 year old girl with mousy brown hair looking at him with an amused expression. The boy bowed. "Lady Hestia," he said, "How do you always know when I am done writing my letters to mum?"

The Goddess smiled warmly. "You are my only champion Percy, I'm always watching you. But that's not the only reason I'm here. I have a new demigod for you to rescue. She is in Minnesota. A…interesting demigod to say the least. It seems you have family Percy." Percy's eyes widened as he heard Hestia's words. "Poseidon had another demigod?" Hestia shook her head resulting in a confused look from Percy. Hestia just smirked as Percy's eyes widened once more, this time in realisation. "Triton? I'm an uncle?" Hestia chuckled softly before her expression turned serious. "Percy, the uncles need to be dealt with." Percy's expression turned grim. If Hestia was calling for violence it must have been bad.

Hestia snapped her fingers as Percy's outfit changed. His casual jeans and shirt morphed into dark blue jeans. A black hoodie covered his body. The belt on his waist held 3 slots with knives on either side of the buckle. 3 were celestial bronze and 3 were Stygian iron. A simple watch with one button emerged on his left wrist. Instead of the time, a map could be seen. Hestia looked at Percy. "You know what to do." Percy closed his eyes. A warm feeling filled his body as Hestia flashed him away.

Percy appeared in an abandoned alley. He glanced at his watch. 2 dots popped up on the radar. The moving blue dot was Percy and the flashing red one was who he needed to rescue. He moved briskly following the map until the watch vibrated slightly, informing him that he had reached. He looked up to see an isolated, run down 2 bedroom apartment. The paint was peeling off and the smell of alcohol filled the air. Percy's eyes narrowed as he heard a crash, followed by a high pitched scream. He raced up the steps leading to the front door and propelled himself off the bannister as he leapt into the air, leading with his legs as he kicked the door open.

 **Percy's POV:**

I looked around and my blood boiled. A young girl that looked around 10 was being cornered by two men who were clearly drunk. She was bleeding from a cut in her head; scratches and wounds covered her arms and her left hand was bent the wrong way. I could feel my eyes heating up and I knew they were flashing a dark red colour. The two men turned around and one of them growled "who are you? Mind your own business." I started untying my belt. I wasn't going to use any weapon other than my hands for this. I smiled evilly. "Step away from my niece. We can do this the easy way or the hard way."

The uglier one walked forward, and I couldn't help but smile. The hard way it is. Ugly tried to throw a right hand as I dodged and sent one of my own into his jaw. Then I let loose. Right hook, left hook, jab, uppercut, uppercut, all while dodging his flailing arms. I took a couple of steps back before striking him with a vicious roundhouse kick on the temple causing him to crumple to the ground. I looked round for ugly number 2 only to see him holding on to the young girl about to strike her with a broken beer bottle. I quickly picked up ugly number one and threw him into the other guy causing them to crash into the coffee table, which snapped under their combined weight. I crouched down next to ugly number 2 and lifted him up by his collar and then started pounding his face. "She's a little girl for Gods sakes." The man groaned as I let him go.

I turned to look for the heir of the seas daughter. She was cowering behind a chair as I approached. Before I could say anything, her eyes widened as she tried to say something. She pointed behind me. I turned only to get smashed in the face by a fist. I stumbled back a couple of steps as a little blood seeped out of a cut on my lip. I grinned as I saw both men standing. Ugly number ran towards me with the broken bottle. He went to swing as I caught his hand before I sent an elbow to his nose causing blood to gush from it. I then threw him into ugly number one who gasped in pain as the bottle pierced his abdomen.

Both men were on the floor. I slid on my knees towards number 2 and knocked him out with a forearm to the face before I picked up number 1. I removed the bottle from his abdomen. He grunted in pain. I leant in to his ear and whispered " _no no no no. You don't get to die like that."_ I took the bottle and slashed his face and his arms as he screamed for mercy. "Did you give the little girl mercy? I didn't think so." I took the bottle and stabbed him through his throat as his eyes rolled into the back of his head. He fell down dead.

The other guy was slowly getting up. I grabbed his arm, twisting it until it snapped before propelling him into the wall where he crashed head first. I lifted him up by the throat as I dragged him towards the undamaged dining table before slamming him through it. I then remembered the girl was hurt and that I needed to tend to her injuries. It looked like playtime was over. I lifted him up before twisting his neck until it snapped. He fell to the ground in a heap.

I turned my attention to the small girl that was cowering in the corner. She had silky, raven black hair just like I used to before Hestia's transformation. Her eyes were a deep sea blue. She was definitely a child of the sea. As I approached her, she shrank away in fear and I frowned, maybe I had over done it with the violence. I knelt in front of her and she flinched. I sighed. "Hey, don't worry. I'm not going to hurt you. You're my niece. Uh…you're father's brother. What's your name?" She hesitated. "L…Lucy." I smiled. "That's a beautiful name. Look at me Lucy." She looked up and as our eyes met I felt my eyes heat up, except this heat was more tranquil and warm. She sighed in content as I filled her with hope and calmness and she relaxed a bit.

"Now I'm going to do something to make you feel better. Do you trust me?" She nodded shyly as I took her hand. With my other hand I summoned water from the taps in the house. She pulled her hand away as I assured her it was ok. My hand glowed a warm orange as I used Hestia's healing power with the power of the water. Water and fire worked in tandem as her wounds healed. Her eyes widened. "How did you do that?" I chuckled softly. "Well-you know the gods? The Greek ones? Well, my dad is the God of the seas-Poseidon and my Patron is Lady Hestia. They are real and your dad is a God too."

"My dad is dead. Both my parents are since I was 3." I shook my head. "Your dad is Triton, the sea messenger god." "If he's my dad then why didn't he come save me and take care of me?" I looked at her in sympathy. "Lucy, he wanted to be here, but he wasn't allowed to so he sent me to help you." Her deep sea blue eyes lit up like the reflection of the sun on a crystal blue ocean. "He does care?" I nodded. Her stomach grumbled and her cheeks turned red in embarrassment. "Hmm, hungry are you? What would you like to eat?" She thought for a second before saying "Macaroni and cheese." I closed my eyes and when I opened them a plate of mac and cheese was in front of her. I laughed at her shocked face. "My patron Hestia blessed me with these powers. Go on. Take a bite."

She cautiously took a bite and shouted "YUM!" After she had finished, the plate disappeared. She yawned. "Why don't you sleep for a while and then I will take you to the hunters camp." I explained about the hunters and camp heroes and she agreed to go to the hunters. I laid her down under a tree outside away from the remains of the house. The tree was on the outskirts of a river. I sat on the river bank and started skipping stones.

The river started bubbling. I jumped up ready with riptide drawn. A figure emerged. He was young, had green skin and black hair tied in a ponytail, and he wore armour studded with pearls. He also had 2 tails which changed to 2 feet and his green skin turned a tan colour like mine. Triton cleared his throat. I put riptide away.

We stood there awkwardly, neither of us talking. We weren't exactly best friends. I looked at him with an eyebrow raised. He looked nervous. "Thanks for uh saving Lucy. I know we started off on the wrong foot, it's just…I was jealous and angry. I was immature and forgot it wasn't even your fault. So…? Can we start over?"

He held out his hand for me to shake. After a few seconds I shook his hand with a smile on my face as a relieved look crossed his face. "So, Lucy huh? You're kid? She definitely looks like a child of the sea." Triton nodded. "Yeah, her mother died a few years when she was 3. Her uncles were fine until about 15 months ago when they lost most of their money when their business went bankrupt."

"So, what powers does she have? You don't really have demigod kids." He rubbed his hands together. "Well she will definitely be able to control the water. She will be able to talk to sea creatures and equestrians of course. As I'm a messenger I have to be fast so she might have the speed of a Hermes kid." I whistled appreciatively. I knew exactly how useful those powers were. They'd saved my life a number of times. That and the fact she was fast meant she could be one powerful demigod.

The sound of footsteps caught our attention. Lucy was looking wide-eyed at us; well more at Triton than me. "Are…are you my dad?" Triton aged to look around 30 as he scooped the young girl into his arms. "Yes Lucy I am. I'm so sorry I wasn't there for you." He put her back on the ground before pulling out a necklace with a small conch shell attached to it. He tied it around her neck. "This is for you to use in emergencies only. You will know when it's the right time to use it. All you have to do is pull the conch shell." He then pulled out 2 knives; one was celestial bronze and the other was silver. They had a smooth grip and they were just the right size when he gave them to Lucy. They suddenly changed into bracelets-one on each hand. "Now these are for when you come up against monsters. The hunt will teach you how to use them. When you think of them they will appear. Now I believe you have to get to the hunt. I will transport you there. I believe you are needed."

Before I had a chance to ask what he meant he had hugged Lucy, said goodbye and then waved his hand as they were transported away.

As we arrived into the hunter's campsite, we saw a battle taking place. I immediately picked up Lucy and hid her behind a small bush and told her to stay put while I dealt with the situation. I scoured the battlefield, there were no huge casualties on the hunter's side but I could tell that the monsters were starting to get the upper hand. I put my hood up-I wasn't quite ready to be recognised yet. I was about to run in to fight when something caught my eye; I did a double-take. Thalia was on the ground with Thorn about to let loose a poison dart. I heard someone shout "Nooooo…"

 **A/N: I was so so so tempted to leave it here but I felt really bad as I already did leave it there twice so I guess third time lucky for you guys.**

 **Narrator's POV:**

Thorn was ready to fire. Artemis's scream was music to his ears. He smiled maniacally. He was about to earn his revenge for all those years ago. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Artemis turn her head unable to watch her lieutenant fall. Suddenly Thorn felt excruciating pain as he yelped. He looked back to see what was hurting and his eyes widened. His tail had been sliced off by a bronze knife. He whirled around to see a man covered in a black hoodie twirling a small object in his right hand. His face was covered so and only 2 pulsing red and green orbs were visible. Thorn looked into his assailant's eyes and saw pure anger directed at him. The manticore faltered for a second before growling. The beast was weaponless as his tail was removed. He bent to pick up a sword from a fallen empousai before advancing towards the man.

Both hunters and monsters alike had stopped fighting when they heard Thorne yelp and watched closely as the manticore picked up the sword and slinked forward. Artemis had turned to see the beast's tail detached from the rest of him. She looked round to see a male in a black hoodie, twirling an unidentifiable object in his hands. She watched as the man did nothing as Thorn got closer and closer. Then, when Thorne was meters away from the man, the object in his hand elongated into a bronze blade covered with flames. The flames caused everybody to freeze from shock. Thorne's eyes were wide.

Percy knew he wasn't ready to reveal himself just yet and so he would have to use only the powers Hestia had given him and his skills with a sword; and his knives. He waited until Thorn was close then caused Riptide to emerge covered in fire. He waited until the manticore struck first before parrying the strike. But Percy wasn't in the mood to play. This monster was about to kill Thalia and that wasn't okay with him. Percy parried again before lunging forward with his own strike. He continued slashing at the beast, constantly moving around, jumping, whirling and striking. Finally, Percy found an opening in Thorn's defence. Feigning a strike he went to slash left before manoeuvring right and striking the sword out of Thorn's hands. Before the manticore could utter out a plea for mercy, Percy decapitated him, causing his body to thump to the ground before dissolving into monster dust.

The monsters were now wary of the new threat and charged at him together, abandoning their fight with the hunters. Percy withdrew Riptide back into pen form before quickly putting it away before someone recognised it. Then, he closed his eyes and concentrated. When he opened his eyes, his hands were on fire up to his shoulders. The monsters slowed down but they couldn't stop. Percy launched fireballs into the oncoming army. The army was decreasing. Percy started chucking knives causing monsters to vanquish, the slots on his belt kept refilling as he threw knife after knife.

Thalia stood up groggily. She shook it off as she looked up. Her eyes widened when she saw her saviour fighting all the monsters at once. She pulled back her bow and fired an arrow. The hunters were pulled out of their shock when their lieutenant re-entered the fight. Even Artemis started firing arrows until the army fell.

The hunt then turned their attention, and more importantly their bows towards the male.

Percy cursed under his breath. " _Great!"_

 **A/N: that's the end of that chapter. Hope you liked it. Was a nice long chapter. Please tell me what you think.** **See you next time.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8: Artemis's request:**

 **A/N: I'm back. Sorry it took so long. Laptop crashed couldn't start it until it got fixed. Anyway, on with the story. Please review and tell me what you think.**

Disclaimer: the usual characters are Rick Riordan's plot mine. I don't own PJO or HoO

 _ **Last time:**_ _The hunt then turned their attention, and more importantly their bows towards the male._

 _Percy cursed under his breath. "Great!"_

Percy raised his hands up in surrender. He was weary of the hunters and for good reasons. They were trained to be killing machines by a Goddess who was lethal in the art of combat. That and the fact that they hated males, which of course Percy was, meant that this situation could end badly for him. He quickly glanced around at the hunters before locating Artemis in her 12 year old form. He got into a low bow and stayed bowing; this was one deity he had no intention to irritate.

"My lady." That was all Percy said as he stayed perfectly still in his kneeling position. He was waiting for Artemis to tell him to stand, in case the hunters shot him for any sudden movements or worse, Artemis felt he was disrespecting her.

Artemis approached the male in front of her slowly. She was not happy that a male had witnessed the hunt, but had to grudgingly admit that he had saved them. He was obviously a demigod, as he clearly knew about the monsters and her hunt. She could also feel his aura of power. It was definitely subdued, but it was there, and it was powerful. "Stand boy."

Percy rose slowly and looked up to see the Goddess of the hunt assessing him with a calculating look. It was clear no one had recognised him and he relaxed slightly. The Goddess strode towards Percy and stopped in front of him. "Who are you boy?" Her tone insinuated that she was not messing around and that she expected Percy to answer all her questions.

Percy winced at the tone Artemis spoke in. He didn't really want to reveal himself. His internal struggle meant he had to use his fake name. Artemis had lost patience and drew her hunting knife. She gazed menacingly at the male in front of her and smirked when he gulped. "I asked you a question. What is your name?"

Percy flashed back to when he was first training in Asia and a monk had asked his name. Percy had been desperately searching for a name when he sensed Hestia's presence in his head. He could almost picture her with an amused expression on her face as she shook her head going _what have you gotten into this time?_ "Say your name is Blaze, Percy. I think it's quite appropriate is it not?" Percy mentally thanked Hestia a hundred times in his head that day. Percy suddenly remembered the angry goddess that was awaiting his response. He cleared his throat. "My name is Blaze my lady. I was only in the area to bring another demigod like I brought the others." Upon hearing his name, a few of the hunters cautiously waved at him. He smiled inside his hood as he tentatively waved back before his arm shot to his side as he saw Artemis's narrowed eyes.

There was a few seconds silence before Percy decided to break it. "Milady, may I bring the demigod here?" The cold look in the goddess's eyes lessened as she remembered the young, maiden demigoddess. She nodded and Percy swiftly left to go find Lucy.

Percy reached the spot where he had left Lucy. He looked around before suddenly starting to panic. She wasn't there. He quickly checked the surrounding area in a desperate attempt to find his niece. "LUCY! WHERE ARE YOU?" Percy stood silently, trying to hear any sound in the hope that Lucy replied. Then, his ears picked up the sound of laughter coming from above him. He glanced at the tree that was right behind him before focusing on one of the branches. Sat right there, laughing, was his 10 year old niece who had somehow managed to climb up there. He sighed with relief. "Lucy, don't scare me like that again! Come on, Lady Artemis wants to meet you. Don't worry, they won't hurt you." _Not so sure about me though._

The pair started walking towards the hunter's campsite. "Now Lucy, no one knows that my name is Percy okay. You have to call me Blaze. Can you keep that a secret?" The young demigod nodded hesitantly. "Great, and remember, be confident, they will accept you into their family." He ruffled her hair causing her to glare at him before she began to fix it. Percy chuckled. As they reached Artemis, he bowed and moments after, Lucy followed his example. Artemis waved them off. She eyed the pair in front of her. Her eyes softened as she gazed over the young girl in front of her.

Artemis walked towards the young girl in her 12 year old form. She looked over the girl, eyeing her for any injuries or wounds. When she was satisfied that there were none she spoke. "So, I assume this _boy_ has told you about your options? You know what the requirements are to join the hunt? You will have to be a maiden forever." Lucy nodded her head. "I am Artemis, Goddess of the Hunt, amongst other things. What is your name?" Lucy looked nervously at Percy who nodded his head slightly, which didn't go unnoticed by Artemis. "It's Lucy." Artemis nodded. "Do you know who your Godly parent is?" Again Lucy glanced at Percy who nodded again. "It's Triton milady."

The hunters and Artemis looked surprised. After a few seconds Artemis regained her composure. "Interesting. Very well, if you are willing to accept the terms then you must now swear the oath. Repeat this: I pledge myself to the Goddess Artemis. I turn my back on the company of men, accept eternal maidenhood, and join the Hunt."

As soon as Lucy repeated the oath, she was covered in a bright, silvery aura. A bow appeared in Artemis's hand which she handed to the young recruit. Artemis then turned to face the male in her camp with a steely glare. "Now to deal with you." The effect her words had were instantaneous. Percy paled immediately as the Hunters, minus the ones he'd saved, aimed their bows at him once more. He quickly gave Lucy a look that promised he would be okay.

 **Percy's POV:**

I cursed under my breath as I held my hands up in surrender. I should have seen this coming. I couldn't parry all those arrows if the hunt decided to shoot all at once and I couldn't use riptide as it would expose me and it wasn't like I could parry dozens of arrows with knives. Plus I didn't want to hurt them, they may not respect me but I sure as hell respected them. How could I not. The hunters' demanded respect. A bunch of teens who were killing machines ( **A/N: this was cooler written out than in my head which is rare for me someone put that on a t-shirt).** They were skilled in combat and hunting, they were strong, fast and more accurate than average demigods. In the current heat they were all dressed in white shirts, silver jackets with matching silver camo pants and black combat boots. That along with arguably the best Olympian in combat terms meant that they had my respect.

"Now, what shall we do with you? I don't allow males to witness the hunt." Before I could think about what I was saying I replied "well it looked like you needed the help. From my point of view you were losing the battle and your lieutenant." I immediately regretted those words as the glare from the Olympian deity in front of me was frightening. To make things worse most of the hunters looked like they were about to release their arrows in places I definitely needed. Artemis gritted her teeth before she spoke again. "You will come with me to Olympus. The council is probably still gathered and you are an issue the council has recently taken an interest in." I couldn't let that happen. I wasn't ready yet.

Suddenly I felt a familiar tingly feeling in my head that alerted me of Lady Hestia's presence. I could picture her in my head laughing at my current situation. _Gods Percy, how do you always end up in these situations?_

 **You tell me Lady Hestia. Are you going to flash me out?** I felt her nod. My attention returned to the pissed off 12 year old Goddess. "I'm afraid I can't do that milady. I hope the next time we meet is under better circumstances. Bye Lucy, take care of yourselves and get to know your new family. We'll see each other again." I felt my body being flashed out in a column of flames as I heard Artemis say "what are you…" I didn't hear the end of her sentence as I was transported away.

 **Artemis's POV:**

I cursed. The male had gotten away again. The last few years had been tough for the hunt. The constant attacks from monsters had us on edge; we hadn't lost any hunters as the monsters would only stay for a short fight before retreating. The fact we hadn't been successful in our mission of finding Perseus Jackson or bringing in the man now known as Blaze, had not improved the hunt's morale. Not to mention ruin my perfect record. I began checking over the hunters for injuries and made sure everyone was okay before addressing them.

"Girls I am returning to Olympus to report this situation and also for the remainder of the council meeting. I shall be back shortly. In the meantime, get ready for dinner. Thalia as Lieutenant, show Lucy around, introduce her to everyone and show her where she will be sleeping. I think she will fit in well with Gabrielle and Megan seeing as they're both new and around her age." Thalia nodded and with that I teleported back to Olympus.

When I arrived, I felt everyone looking at me curiously. Probably because I had just left in the middle of the meeting. I stood in the middle of the throne room before I addressed my father. "Father, I have some issues that I need to discuss with urgency." A look of curiosity formed on his face that was mirrored by everybody else apart from Hestia who was still tending the Hearth. "Proceed daughter." I took a deep breath before I started. "The reason I left the meeting was because my hunters were attacked by monsters including the manticore. They are starting to attack more often and this time they were going for the kill. Thalia nearly died but a man appeared and saved her by cutting the tail of the beast before decapitating it. He had fire powers and his aura was powerful; subdued but powerful. Once the monsters were vanquished, I questioned him and found out his name was Blaze and he has been the one rescuing demigods and bringing them to either camp. When I was about to bring him here he disappeared in flames."

I could tell that Father was not happy that the man was not in front of him right now. However, after what seemed like hours he seemed to accept it and nodded. "Very well Artemis. We shall all keep a look out for this man. Is there anything else or shall we break council?" I tensed. This would be a blow for my pride but I had to swallow it for the sake of my hunters, who were definitely not going to like this.

"Actually Father, I have a request." He looked at me questioningly. I continued. "With the recent attacks on my hunters and my duties I feel as if I can't always protect them to the best of my abilities and I can't stand watching them in pain and I know it would pain me to see any of them die. So I would like to ask the permission of the council to appoint a Guardian of the Hunt."

There was silence in the throne room until that imbecile Ares started to laugh as if I had told the funniest joke in the world. But I was not playing around. This concerned my hunters and their safety so for me this was not laughing matter. I was dead serious. I drew my bow and shot him in the knee before he could react causing him to yelp. "I wasn't joking you vile scum so if you don't want the next one between your legs I would keep your mouth shut." I smirked evilly at him as he paled. Zeus looked like he was pondering my request. I was about to continue speaking but I was beaten to it by Athena.

"I do believe it is a reasonable and logical request father. There have been an increase in attacks on both the camp and the hunters, but the hunters are more vulnerable to attack as they don't have the camp borders. However, it would make sense to give them a guardian Father as they are some of our best fighters and if there is another war coming with these monsters then Artemis and her hunters need to be in full health. The only problem we face is who to assign this task to." I beamed with pride as I heard Athena praise my hunters. I gave her a look of gratitude and she nodded at me.

"Very well," Zeus stated. "Who shall we send? Heracles?" "NOOO!" I shouted. "Not him. Anyone but that, that sorry excuse of a minor God." I could see Father was about to defend his son but Hestia spoke first.

"I think I have the perfect candidate for you Artemis. I'm sure he won't disappoint you." She had a sly grin on her face as she looked up from tending the Hearth. She closed her eyes. As she opened them a column of flames appeared by the fire before it cleared revealing a familiar figure.

"What the…"

 **A/N: well what did you guys think? It was a decently long chapter. Was mostly a filler. Tell me what you thought. I know some of you will think that there should have been more confrontation between Perc and the hunt after the battle but I hadn't planned it like that. Hopefully I will be back soon now that holidays are about to start but I can't promise. Happy holidays! Until next time.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9: new job:**

 **A/N: I'm back. Just going straight to the writing. Enjoy!**

Disclaimer: the usual characters are Rick Riordan's plot mine. I don't own PJO or HoO

 _ **Last time:**_ _"I think I have the perfect candidate for you Artemis. I'm sure he won't disappoint you." She had a sly grin on her face as she looked up from tending the Hearth. She closed her eyes. As she opened them a column of flames appeared by the fire before it cleared revealing a familiar figure._

" _What the…"_

 **Percy's POV:**

I felt myself being flashed out the clearing. When I arrived I took in my surroundings. It looked like I was back in Hestia's palace on Olympus. It wasn't overly flashes but a nice homely place. A hearth that looked exactly like the one in the throne room, only slightly smaller, was alight in the centre of the room.

The marble floor was tiled and smooth. I looked around until I spotted a doorway. I walked through trying to find a bathroom to freshen up. I located it and entered. I turned on the tap and felt the cool water run through my fingertips as I washed the dirt and monster dust off my hands. I splashed my face with water.

Feeling refreshed, I walked back into the main room to take a seat and wait for Hestia. As soon as I walked into the room I felt myself being flashed away again.

"What the…"

I instinctively went to pocket to bring out riptide but stopped as I saw where I was. The throne room on Olympus was as grand as ever. Each of the Gods were looking at me with curiosity, except for Hestia who was smiling slyly. I bowed to Zeus and then quickly to each of the other gods in the room before looking at my patron with an eyebrow raised. I know what you are thinking-yeah I did bow to all the gods, even Ares. Can't have them knowing it's me. Hestia rose from her place and locked eyes with me.

 _ **You're needed again Percy. The Gods have a job that needs someone to do. A dangerous one that requires you. I think you are perfect to carry out this task.**_

I was wondering why Hestia was talking inside my head, but I went with it. _What job is it? And why me? I mean what has come up that's so dangerous that I need to come out of hiding?_

 _ **Percy, Artemis has requested that the council allow her to appoint a Guardian of the Hunt. Now I know she prefers someone female but you are the best candidate for the job. Zeus wanted Hercules to do it but as you can tell that didn't go down well with Artemis. If there is war coming, the hunters need to be able to fight. With all of these attacks happening, their safety is a key priority and I know you will protect them well.**_

I laughed nervously in my head. _Are you serious my lady? Does anyone actually want this job? I mean if I do this I'm going to die. They will shoot me with Gods knows how many arrows._

I looked defiantly at Hestia but she wouldn't back down from the stare. I sighed. I knew I wasn't going to win this argument. _Fine! But why are you talking in my head?_

 _ **I think you know why Percy. You will need their trust and for that you will have to reveal yourself. You have hidden away for too long. It is time you came back. War is on the horizon. You will need to protect the hunters. I know why you wish to stay hidden; I know you feel you should've been able to cope after the war, and that you let your friends down, but every hero has their limits. There is nothing to be ashamed of.**_

I sighed. She was right. She always was. I had been running for too long and it was time for me to return to the world I was familiar with. I looked back at Hestia and nodded my head slightly to inform her that I was willing to reveal myself. She smiled warmly.

 _ **I'm proud of you Percy. You are doing the right thing. Now how about we give the other Gods a show before I reveal you?**_ There was mirth shining in Hestia's eyes as she turned to address the others in the room.

 **Narrator's POV:**

The Gods in the throne room eyed the column of flames that Hestia had summoned. They gazed curiously as an 18 year old boy stepped out. Each God was taking in his appearance. Dark black hair with pulsing red and green eyes. His black hoodie covered in gold dust and his dark blue jeans were covered in dirt and mud.

"What the…"

His outburst was humorous to most present. The boy seemed to realise where he was and turned to the God at the head of the council. He bowed to Zeus before quickly bowing to everyone else. His attention then turned to Hestia. He gave her a questioning look, ignoring the curious gazes of the other Gods.

It was clear to all those present that they were communicating in their heads. Hestia's face was clear and void of expression as she looked into the eyes of the boy she had summoned.

The boy's facial expressions were a stark contrast. His face showed exactly what he was thinking. There was curiosity etched on his face before changing to disbelief. The boy's face clearly alerted the Gods what he was clearly thinking. _Are you serious? Is this a joke?_ His facial expression then switched to show he was having an internal debate before finally, his face showed a look of acceptance. The boy gave Hestia a slight nod, causing Hestia to break into a warm smile. It was clear she was pleased to win whatever debate they were having. Mirth shone in Hestia's eyes as she looked at the other Gods present. All this had occurred in a matter of seconds.

Before she could say anything, Artemis had shot up from her throne; she drew her bow and aimed it at the boy in the centre of the throne room.

"You!" Artemis snarled. "Father, this is the man that has been saving the demigods. The one I was talking about earlier. The one that calls himself Blaze." The council were now intrigued. This was the man who had been saving their children. Never before had a council session been so interesting.

"I would prefer if you didn't point your arrow at my champion Artemis. If I am not mistaken, he saved your hunter's lives a few hours ago. You asked for a guardian, and I am simply providing you with who I think is the best candidate for the job." Artemis lowered her bow slightly, but the glare she was giving the champion of Hestia had not diminished. The boy however, did not back down.

Zeus cleared his throat and gestured to Artemis to sit back down on her throne. Reluctantly, Artemis sat down. "Hestia, we have been looking for this man for years, and you have known him and his identity all this time. Why didn't you tell us?" Zeus's tone was slightly accusatory. There wasn't sheer anger in his words, he had improved over the last few years, but there were still things that just annoyed him.

Hestia looked at Zeus and shrugged. "He is my champion. He was not a threat. You never asked me directly if I knew him. And besides, I had promised not to disclose his identity or his location to anyone until he was ready. Now," Hestia paused as she looked each of the other Gods in the eyes; "I believe you will want to know who he is and why he is the best option to guard the hunters." There were nods from the rest of the council. Most Gods, like Apollo and Hermes were sat at the edge of their thrones, waiting in anticipation. Hestia continued talking.

"Of course I could list off all his accomplishments, but I would rather just show you. It will be easier. After that, you can vote whether or not you agree. And Artemis, I know he is a male, but try thinking logically. This is about your Hunter's safety." Hestia glanced at her champion and silently asked a question: _Ready?_ The boy nodded.

As soon as he nodded, Blaze's eyes glowed a fiery red. Flames engulfed his entire body. The Gods who had previously been sitting on the edge of their seats, Apollo and Hermes, yelped and shot back to avoid the flames that were quickly spreading. Hestia held a mischievous grin as her champion went up in flames.

Blaze however, had not moved. He stood calmly, trusting his patron. The fire branched out, covering the entire throne room before it flared, causing the Olympians to close their eyes. Soon, the heat given off vanished, as the Hearth absorbed both the heat and the flames.

The Olympias glanced back towards Blaze. His clothes had become cleaner. There was no evidence of mud on his jeans and his black hoodie had no monster dust. There was now a belt on his waist with 3 knives on either side. His hood now covered his face.

"Lower your hood my champion."

As soon as Hestia spoke those words Blaze started reaching for his hood. The Olympians held their breath to see what other transformations had occurred. The hood came down agonizingly slowly before they revealed raven black hair and mesmerising sea green eyes and a familiar face.

There were a few gasps before silence fell upon the throne room. It wasn't long before it was broken as the God of the Seas whispered "Percy."

Percy looked at the face of his father before a grin split his face. "Hi dad." Tears fell from Poseidon's face as he rose from his throne and made his way towards his son. A few strides later he shrunk down to human size before wrapping Percy in an embrace. Percy returned the hug with as much force, taking in the calming scent of the sea that his father possessed.

"I expect some explanation as to where you've been the last few years Percy, but right now it appears we have some business to attend to." Percy nodded before turning his attention to Zeus. He knelt in front of Zeus.

"Lord Zeus, my patron has informed me that you require a Guardian for the Hunt. I know the risks involved with this position but I am willing to accept." Percy slowly rose from his kneeling position before standing straight and looking at the king of the Gods. Zeus nodded briefly.

"Very well Perseus. I approve of this choice Hestia. Is there any here that has any problem with this choice?" Zeus looked over the throne room at the other gods. None raised their hands. "Very well, the council has accepted. Artemis, do you accept Perseus as your new Guardian?"

Artemis glanced at Percy who was staring expressionless at her. She could sense he had changed from the man he was five or so years ago. And not just change as in he could now throw fire and had a different appearance. No, in the past he hadn't been as fast or agile as he had shown today. His strength has increased as well. There was also the fact that he had not used any of the powers he had inherited from his father. This meant that he was not reliant on those, but could easily use his other skills as well. Artemis couldn't help but slightly respect the demigod. She had made a decision.

"I accept father. But I will require an oath of allegiance. I assume he knows better than to flirt with my hunters anyway." Zeus nodded and waved his hand towards Percy. The son of Poseidon made his way towards Artemis's throne. He knelt at the base and looked up.

"I Percy Jackson, son of Poseidon and Champion of Hestia, swear on the river Styx to protect the hunters and Lady Artemis for as long as the Fates foresee." ( **A/N: who thought Chaos was going to appear here? Come on admit it. Nope, I have a different angle on the Chaos thing-no hints.)**

Artemis looked intrigued at the oath but quickly caught herself. "I accept your oath Perseus."

"Well, if that is all then this council meeting is over, Perseus stay back I wish to have a word with you. Don't look at me like that Poseidon I'm not going to blast the boy. Council dismissed." With that, the Gods flashed out one by one. Poseidon wished his son good luck before flashing out until only Hestia, Zeus and Artemis remained.

"Artemis, you can leave and inform your hunters of the outcome of the meeting. I will make sure Perseus makes it to your campsite." Artemis raised an eyebrow before she teleported out of the throne room. Zeus then turned to Percy.

"I know you're a bit anxious about this conversation but I assure you I have no intention of harming you. You know, it's a father's duty to look after his children. I know I haven't been the best father, but my daughter and her hunters are in danger and while I can't protect them personally, I will make sure they are protected properly." Zeus sighed and hesitated as if he was debating internally. "Therefore, I will offer you the blessing of the sky. I don't know exactly what it entails as I have never given this blessing before but it should help you and we all know you will need it. Guarding the hunt will not be easy; and I'm not just talking about the monsters. They will try and make your life difficult."

Percy nodded. He had assumed as much. The hunters were not going to make his life easy. Percy was however shocked. A blessing from Zeus was not what he expected. Before he could fully grasp what was happening, Zeus began chanting in Greek much too fast for Percy to understand what was being said. As the chant finished, an electric blue aura started to make its way towards him. The aura encompassed him before he felt a sharp pain coming from his back.

Percy fell to the floor on his hands and knees as the pain racked through his body. Something was trying to make its way out of his back. There was a resounding _**RIP**_ sound followed by relief. Percy glanced back to see sleek black wings protruding from his back. His eyes widened as he went to stroke them. They were soft and felt light. He rose so that they could unfold. As they did, Percy noticed that the bottom row of feathers on both wings were a different black. They had gold and bronze lining and looked sharper than the other feathers. They were a huge 6 feet in width.

Zeus snorted. "Wings! Of course, it had to be wings." Shaking his head, Zeus walked up to Percy to inspect the wings. "Well it looks like you have normal feather wings but infused with stygian iron so that you can use them for protection. That will also help you be more agile and faster when flying. It looks like the feathers at the bottom are different. They are made from stygian iron and lined with both imperial gold and celestial bronze. I believe they work like throwing knives when you are in the air. I think if you swipe your wings they should, or at least the feathers you want will fly towards a target. They should replace themselves too. Why don't you try it out?"

After a few tries, Percy finally got the hang of flying. As he rose in the centre of the throne room, Zeus erected a target. Percy folded his right wing in front of his body, before he swept it back around towards his back. He thought about 1 feather leaving his wing and flying towards the target. Sure enough, a sole feather detached itself from the wing as if it had been thrown.

Percy's joy was short lived. Instead of hitting the target, it missed by inches, ricocheting off Zeus's statue (the one with Annabeth's plaque), before hitting the ceiling and finally embedding itself in Zeus's throne. Percy glanced at Zeus, who was looking in disbelief and slight anger at the aftermath. Biting, down his anger, Zeus motioned towards Percy, indicating that he should try again.

It took 5 minutes before Percy could shoot one feather on target and another 15 to learn how to shoot all of them from one wing. Percy felt elated that he had made fast progress, but had to make sure he would keep practicing. With his job done, Zeus quietly spoke to Hestia, before waving a hand over Percy and then flashing out.

Percy could sense Artemis's presence in his head along with her location. Zeus had given him an internal GPS that would lead him to the Hunt. Hestia regarded her champion. "I knew you would do the right thing Percy. Now before you leave, I will give you the ability to control your aspect changes. Obviously, your outfit will remain the same, but you will be able to control when you are Blaze, and when you are Percy. Now hurry along; Artemis and the Hunt will be waiting for you. I suggest you fly, gives a nice element of surprise." After a brief hug, Hestia left the throne room.

Percy looked at the open window in the throne room. "Well, here goes nothing."

With that Percy leapt out the window, falling briefly before expanding his wings and shooting off to find the hunt.

 **A/N: hey guys, what do you think? I know it has been a while I am sorry but it was unavoidable. Essays due, exams to sit, stress to overcome. Anyway please review, comment what you think it does help. Next time will be Percy being introduced to the hunt.**

 **Sorry to those who thought Chaos was going to come after Percy swore an oath to him and then one of the Gods says you shouldn't do that and then Percy gets bare powers. I have a set storyline for when I had the chaos appearance and it is not quite yet but I will not give spoilers. Until next time.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10: The Guardian arrives…in style:**

 **A/N: I'm baaaaack. Who remembers me? No one? Makes sense, I was gone for too long. Anyway, just going straight to the writing. Enjoy!**

Disclaimer: the usual characters are Rick Riordan's plot mine. I don't own PJO or HoO

 _ **Last time:**_ _Percy looked at the open window in the throne room. "Well, here goes nothing."_

 _With that Percy leapt out the window, falling briefly before expanding his wings and shooting off to find the hunt._

 **Percy's POV:**

Flying felt weird. Even though Zeus had given me permission to fly in his domain, the Poseidon side of me still hadn't adjusted to flight. Every time I looked down I could feel the butterflies in my stomach.

I focused on the location of the hunt. As I got closer, I started wondering how to arrive. I went through the various scenarios in my head. The obvious one was to just fly in and land next to Lady Artemis as she introduced me. I immediately disregarded it. The hunt would just see a flying object headed for their mistress and the arrows would descend upon me in a flash. Bad idea as I wasn't sure if Artemis had explained the whole guardian thing yet.

I could just land a few yards away and then walk into the clearing. Boring. Plus the hunt would still fire arrows when they see a male walking into the clearing. I could use the wings as a shield but then they might take me as a threat. Bad idea.

I could just walk in as myself, not Blaze, with my arms in surrender. Again where is the fun in that? Plus it wouldn't look good for me as their guardian to go in surrendering. Ugh, all bad ideas. Why is it so hard to come up with a kick ass entrance? I needed something cool, not over the top, but cool. Maybe a little power show, some fun. I need to show what I can do without seeming boastful. They would get offended easily so I have to show I can handle it. Oh I almost forgot, Thalia is going to get angry real quick so maybe prank her while I'm at it.

I smiled evilly. I had the perfect entrance. I was going to arrive in style. I just had to hope Artemis would stop her hunters from maiming me.

 **Narrator's POV:**

Artemis stood in front of her hunters. She had been informing them on the events of the council meeting prior to her asking for a guardian. She didn't know how to tell them that the Hunt would be getting a male Guardian. It was definitely humiliating for her.

"As you know, we have been attacked more and more by groups of monsters. They are becoming smarter. I will likely be sent on more and more solo scouting missions, and I know you do not like visiting the camp often. So I thought in our best interest to ask the council to provide us with a guardian so that you are adequately protected when I am not around. The council has accepted my request, but the downside is that they have provided us with a _male_ guardian."

There was a shocked silence amongst the hunters. They knew the seriousness of their situation; and if Artemis requested a guardian then things must be bad, but a male guardian was a lot to take in.

As soon as the shock passed, the complaints were voiced by all. Artemis allowed her hunters to moan at the prospect of a male joining the hunt. She knew her hunters trusted her. They were always behind her, supporting her.

Artemis raised her hand and the effect was immediate. All talking stopped.

"He will be with us shortly. He has given an oath and I have accepted it. I will allow him the courtesy to introduce himself to you all. It was..."

She never got to finish. An object coated in fire was headed straight for the clearing. At first she thought it was a meteor, but then the object opened up to reveal a man with wings hurtling towards them. He looked like he was going to crash land right in front of her.

The hunters turned to see what their mistress was looking. As soon as they saw the man, they had their bows out. But they were too slow. The man landed causing a minor tremor to go through the Earth before tucking and rolling. The tremor caused the hunters to drop their bows. He stopped on one knee right in front of Artemis.

The hunters picked up their bows before gathering by their Goddess' side. Once again Artemis raised her hand. This time, the hunters relaxed their stances, but their bows were still clutched tightly. They studied the man in front of them. Recognition passed through their faces.

Blaze stood, well, knelt before Lady Artemis.

Artemis studied the new guardian that was currently knelt before. She gave him an unimpressed look as he looked up at her. "A bit of an exaggerated entrance don't you think? Was it really necessary?"

Her question was met with a brief shrug of his shoulders and a wry smile. Artemis made a motion with her hands signalling Blaze to rise to his feet. She wasn't used to treating males civilly but they needed him and it wouldn't be wise to chase him away as there were certainly worse candidates. He rose to his feet slowly, tucking his wings back into his back.

"Do they know…?"

He looked at Artemis as he left his question hanging. She gave him a brief shake of the head. So she was making him introduce himself. This was definitely going to be interesting. He turned towards the hunters and gave a polite nod of the head.

"Hi. I guess I should introduce myself. You all know me as Blaze. I'm here because Lady Artemis requested a guardian. Now I know you guys are lethal fighters, and more than capable of looking out for yourselves, so I'm just here as a safety precaution. I'll probably just stay out of your way and make sure you can do what you usually without being in danger I guess."

He was definitely nervous. He didn't know how they were going to react. This was going to be the hard part. Telling them that he was in fact Percy. Just as he was about to continue talking, Thalia stepped forward. He knew what this was going to be about. She was the Lieutenant; she had to test him on behalf of the hunters. He knew his responses had to be careful. The last thing he wanted to do was offend them.

"So, you're the new guardian huh? What makes you think you are worthy? I know you saved us before, but that was because you caught everyone off guard. Can you do it when confronted head on?"

He knew she was challenging him. He allowed the smallest of smiles to break through. This was Thalia all right. He thought about his answer for a moment.

"I believe I will rise to the challenge. My style of fighting is rather unconventional. I can prove to be a worthy adversary on the battlefield. I hope I will meet your expectations lieutenant. I can be a shock to many when fighting. As I have learnt when training, that when I'm fighting, unpredictability is often your friend. If I don't know what I'm about to do, then my opponent won't have a chance either. You should expect the unexpected when you fight me. Care to find out?"

He was goading her on. He knew exactly what he was doing. Gods he had missed Thalia and their not so little fights. He was subtly challenging her. He knew she was going to fry him when he revealed himself anyway, so might as well give her a little shock first.

Thalia stepped forward, Aegis and her spear materialising in front of her. Artemis looked like she was going to stop the fight before muttering something to herself and shaking her head. The two were about 25 yards away from each other; Thalia with her weapons drawn, and Blaze, just standing still.

Thalia had had enough of waiting and charged. The hunters watched in anticipation. They knew Artemis wouldn't just accept any random person as the guardian. They knew there had to be something about him that caused Artemis to allow him to become the guardian. Maybe it was his ability to avoid being captured by them. Or maybe it was his fighting ability. Either way, they were about to find out.

Blaze stood still as he allowed Thalia to come closer. He was planning something. He wasn't going to fight her at all. There was only one reason for this. If he drew riptide then his identity would be given away instantly and that wasn't the way he wanted to reveal himself. No, there was a better and more _fun_ way to do it.

When Thalia had covered half the distance, he allowed his body to be engulfed in flames. Thalia didn't slow down as she saw the new guardian go up in flames. Then almost as suddenly as the flames ignited, they vanished. The only thing that had changed was that Blaze had his hood up. Thalia was getting closer. Just before she got into striking distance, Blaze removed the hood. This time Thalia stopped dead in her tracks with a look of shock on her face. Many hunters gasped as they tried to understand what they were witnessing.

Blaze was gone. He was no longer standing before them. In his place was…Percy Jackson with his signature lop-sided grin plastered across his face. He started walking forward towards Thalia until he was face to face with her. Thalia was still frozen in shock as she watched Blaze, no Percy or whoever this was, approach her. In the blink of an eye a bronze sword was at her throat.

"Do you yield? Didn't I tell you to expect the unexpected Lieutenant? So…do I meet your expectations Thals? To be honest, I expected a better fight from you Pinecone Face."

Percy removed riptide from her throat before morphing it back into pen form. He turned around to gauge everyone's reaction. Artemis was rolling her eyes at his display. Some of the hunters were rubbing their eyes just to double check that what they'd seen had actually occurred. Lucy had a wide grin on her face as she realised her uncle would be with her in the hunt. She waved at him causing him to smile and wave back.

Then Percy felt himself falling on the ground. He turned around to see Thalia, and she was absolutely pissed. He laughed nervously and starting backing up. Sparks were starting to shoot out of her body. He had suspected her to be angry, just not _this_ angry. He put his hands up in surrender.

"I didn't mean it Thals, I'm sorry. OW!"

His words fell on deaf ears as Thalia sent an arc of electricity straight at Percy. He shot to his feet as he prepared to run. He received a slap as he got to his feet. The assault was going to get worse if Artemis had not intervened by holding back the enraged huntress.

"Where have you been Percy? It's been 5 years," said Thalia as she was let go by Artemis. In response Percy wrapped his arms around her in a short hug.

"It doesn't matter, I'm back now."

 **A/N: Sorry for the long hiatus, no excuses. It's a little shorter than I would've liked but I'm getting used to writing again. I thought it was an appropriate place to end because I'm back now too like Percy, except I wasn't gone for 5 years although it felt that long. How did you like it? Please review and comment-they do really help me. Will hopefully update soon (next couple of weeks already started next chapter).**


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